Wolgast
Wolgast ( ) is a town in the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is situated on the bank of the river Peenestrom, vis-a-vis the island of Usedom that can be accessed by road and railway via a bascule bridge (Blaues Wunder). In December 2004, the town had a population of 12,725. History The precursor of present-day Wolgast was a Slavic Wendish stronghold located on an island within the Peenestrom sound.Schmidt, Roderich (22009): Das historische Pommern, Cologne, p. 159. Contemporary sources called it Hologost(a), Ologost, Woligost, Woligast, Wologost, Wolegast, Wolegust, Walagost(um), Walogost(um), Waløgost(um), Waloguslum, Walagust, Walegusth, Walægust, Walgust, Wolgast, Valagust or Valegust.Prüf. Vita: [http://www.dmgh.de/de/fs1/object/display/bsb00000718_00126.html Ologost]; Ebo III.7: [http://www.dmgh.de/de/fs1/object/display/bsb00001081_00898.html Hologost]; Herbord II.39, III.4–6: [http://www.dmgh.de/de/fs1/object/display/bsb00000887_00757.html Hologosta]; Helmold I.38: [http://www.dmgh.de/de/fs1/object/display/bsb00000735_00106.html Woligost, Woligast]; 1140 papal bull: [http://www.dmgh.de/de/fs1/object/display/bsb00000517_00032.html Wologost]; Scandinavian sources: [http://www.dmgh.de/de/fs1/object/display/bsb00000885_00653.html Walagostum, Walogostum, Waløgostum, Waloguslum, Walagust, Walegusth, Walægust, Walgust, Wolgast, Wolegust, Valagust, Valegust] Wilhelm Ferdinand Gadebusch traces the name through Wendish to mean a "large grove."Wilhelm Ferdinand Gadebusch: Chronik der Insel Usedom. W. Dietze, Anklam 1863, S. 243 (Digitalisat) It is unclear which of the tribes documented in the area the population belonged to, the Veleti/Lutici or Rani.Ruchhöft, Fred (2001): Die Grenzen der sächsischen Marken im Gebiet der Ostseeslawen im 10. und 11. Jahrhundert (Baltische Studien NF 87), pp. 7–23, esp. 19 ff. In 1123/24, prince Henry of the Obodrites used the stronghold as a stepping stone in his campaign against the Rani.Niemeck, Andreas (2002): Die Zisterzienserklöster Neuenkamp und Hiddensee im Mittelalter, Cologne, p. 12; Helmold I.38. In 1128, after the Pomeranian duke Wartislaw I had subdued the area, the Wends were baptized by Otto of Bamberg on his second Pomeranian mission, while Wartislaw was also present in the stronghold.Schmidt, Roderich (22009): Das historische Pommern, Cologne, pp. 152, 160. In this context, Wolgast was described as a opulentissima civitas by the chronicler Ebo, it is however unclear whether this should be read as meaning opulent or mighty "castle" or "town."Schmidt, Roderich (22009): Das historische Pommern, Cologne, pp. 157–158. Otto destroyed a local temple devoted to Gerowit, a god of war, and replaced it with a church.Schmidt, Roderich (22009): Das historische Pommern, Cologne, p. 158; "Slawische Religion" in TRE XXXI (2000), p. 398; Ebo III.5 ff.; Herbord III.4 f. The thesis that this first church was a predecessor of today's St. Peter's church has not yet been confirmed.Schmidt, Roderich (22009): Das historische Pommern, Cologne, p. 158. Wolgast was made the seat of a Pomeranian castellany,Schmidt, Roderich (22009): Das historische Pommern, Cologne, p. 159. and played an important role in the 12th-century warfare between Pomeranians, Rani and the Danes.Schmidt, Roderich (22009): Das historische Pommern, Cologne, p. 158. In 1162, Wolgast was targeted by an allied Danish-Rani fleet, and temporarily had to accept Danish suzerainty.Riis, Thomas (2003): Das mittelalterliche dänische Ostseeimperium (Studien zur Geschichte des Ostseeraumes IV), Odense, pp. 23–25. In 1164, in the context of the battle of Verchen, a Danish force took control of Wolgast, and left it to a mixed Rani-Pomeranian-Obrodite garrison after peace was restored.Büttner, Bengt (2007): Die Pfarreien der Insel Rügen (Veröffentlichungen der Historischen Kommission für Pommern V 42), Cologne, pp. 33–34. Yet, the Rani (the Danish allies) were soon expelled by the Pomeranians, and the Obodrites (also Danish allies) left the scene.Riis, Thomas (2003): Das mittelalterliche dänische Ostseeimperium (Studien zur Geschichte des Ostseeraumes IV), Odense, p. 26. The Danes attacked Wolgast again in the summer of 1167, and again either in late 1167 or in 1168, and devastated the area.Riis, Thomas (2003): Das mittelalterliche dänische Ostseeimperium (Studien zur Geschichte des Ostseeraumes IV), Odense, pp. 27–28. In 1177, another Danish assault on Wolgast failed, but a campaign in 1179 was successful, though the Danish fleet accepted money instead of a surrender.Riis, Thomas (2003): Das mittelalterliche dänische Ostseeimperium (Studien zur Geschichte des Ostseeraumes IV), Odense, p. 41. In 1184, Wolgast was unsuccessfully besieged by the Danes, but finally came under Danish control in 1185 when the Pomeranian duke accepted Danish suzerainty.Riis, Thomas (2003): Das mittelalterliche dänische Ostseeimperium (Studien zur Geschichte des Ostseeraumes IV), Odense, pp. 44–45. While t Danes lost control over most of Pomerania in 1227, Wolgast remained a Danish bridgehead until either 1241/43 or 1250.Riis, Thomas (2003): Das mittelalterliche dänische Ostseeimperium (Studien zur Geschichte des Ostseeraumes IV), Odense, p. 48. On the mainland opposite to island with the castle, a new planned town was built in the course of the Ostsiedlung.Müller-Mertens, Eckhard (1999): Stadtgründungen ... in Riis et al.: Stadtwerdung und städtische Typologie des Ostseegebietes bis zur Mitte des 18. Jahrhunderts (Studien zur Geschichte des Ostseeraumes III), Odense, pp. 113–150; esp. 121. It is not known when exactly this city of Wolgast was granted German town law, though its existence is confirmed by a letter written in or before 1259.Schmidt, Roderich (22009): Das historische Pommern, Cologne, p. 160. The original charter was issued by both Pomeranian dukes of the time, Wartislaw III and Barnim I, and a confirmation of the Lübeck law was issued in 1282 by duke Bogislaw IV.Schmidt, Roderich (22009): Das historische Pommern, Cologne, pp. 160–161. Wolgast was residence of the Pomeranian dukes from 1285 until the ruling House of Pomerania went extinct in 1637.Berger (2008), p. 361 Capital of Pomerania-Wolgast, a longtime inner partition of the duchy, a residential palace was built in Renaissance style on an island hence called Castle Island.Dubilski (2003), p. 173 The ducal line of Pomerania-Wolgast went extinct when Philipp Julius died without issue.Wolgast (1995), p. 217 During the Thirty Years' War, the Swedish Empire occupied Wolgast in 1630 and kept it as a part of Swedish Pomerania until 1815. The former ducal palace decayed, and the town was burned down in 1713 by Russian forces during the Great Northern War, in retaliation for Swedish arson in Altona. Only the church, four chapels and four more buildings were spared by the fire. Most houses of the Old Town therefore date back to the 18th and 19th centuries, the townhall was renewed after the fire in baroque style. After the Swedish withdrawal from Pomerania in 1815, the city was integrated into the Prussian Province of Pomerania. Last remnants of the palace were removed in 1849. Wolgast prospered throughout the 19th century as a port for grain trade. Wolgast lost its status as a Kreis capital on June 12, 1994, when Kreis Wolgast was merged into Kreis Ostvorpommern, which became part of Vorpommern-Greifswald in 2011. Museums The town's history is presented in the Stadtgeschichtliches Museum (Towns' historical museum) in a building at the market place nicknamed Kaffeemühle. The former house of painter Phillip Otto Runge is also a museum by now (Rungemuseum). References Bibliography * * * External links * Wolgast depiction in 1614 by Eilhard Lubinus Category:Towns in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Category:Port cities and towns in Germany Category:Port cities and towns of the Baltic Sea Category:Vorpommern-Greifswald Category:Coastal settlements in Germany (Baltic Sea) Category:Members of the Hanseatic League Category:Lübeck law Category:Settlements established in 1257